Twinkies take cake to a sweeter place

Recipes that appear in Idea Alley have not been tested by the

Mary Haney shares this no-bake dessert Twinkie lovers will want to gobble up.

“I think I may have gotten this recipe for Twinkie Cake from the Idea Alley a long time ago,” Haney writes. “[I] couldn’t make it for a while when they took Twinkies off the market, but they’re back now!”

Twinkie Cake

8 Twinkie snack cakes, cut into

1-inch pieces 1½ cups milk 1 (6-ounce) package instant

vanilla pudding mix 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened

condensed milk 1 (8-ounce) carton frozen

whipped topping, thawed 1 (any size) bag or carton frozen sliced strawberries in syrup, thawed

Place Twinkie pieces in bottom of 9-by-13-inch baking dish.

In a bowl, mix milk and pudding. Stir in condensed milk and whipped topping. Pour over Twinkies. Chill until firm, at least 2 hours. To serve, scoop into dish and spoon strawberries and syrup over the top.

Several weeks ago Linda Dickerson requested a recipe for minestrone made without tomatoes. An unidentified reader thinks maybe this is what Dickerson is looking for. It does include a bit of tomato paste for flavor, but no chunks or diced bits of tomato.

Minestrone

3 tablespoons olive oil 1 onion, finely diced 1 carrot, peeled and finely

diced 1 rib celery, sliced ¼-inch thick Kosher salt and ground black

pepper 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 tablespoon tomato paste 6 cups low-sodium beef broth 1 bay leaf 1½ cups cut fresh or frozen

green beans 1 (15-ounce) can cannellini

beans, rinsed 1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans, rinsed cup small pasta, such as shells or elbows Handful fresh spinach, roughly chopped, optional cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the garlic and cook 30 seconds to 1 minute. Stir in the tomato paste and mix to combine. Add the broth, bay leaf and green beans. Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Add the canned beans and pasta and continue simmering until pasta is cooked to desired doneness, about 10 minutes more. Remove the bay leaf and discard. Stir in spinach, if using, and cook just until spinach wilts. Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with parmesan.

Makes about 6 servings.

Pumpkin lavender soup like that served at now closed Starving Artists Cafe in North Little Rock for Carole Baxter.

Send recipe contributions, requests and culinary questions to Kelly Brant, Idea Alley, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, P.O. Box 2221, Little Rock, Ark. 72203; email:

kbrant@arkansasonline.com